Another World Wayback: Remember Rachel Cory

For nearly 30 years, Rachel Davis Cory Hutchins on Another World reigned as one of the most complicated female characters in soap opera history. In the 1960s and early 70s, she was the preeminent villainess on the NBC soap.

But her more manipulative tendencies were curbed by a 1975 marriage to a loyal spouse – and Rachel, in turn, became the victim of Iris Cory Bancroft’s machinations – not quite the relationship one expects between step-mother and child!

In the 80s and 90s, she continued to make mistakes – usually of the male variety – but Rachel was now a matriarch who helped steady a fractured family prone to infighting (with ole Iris generally at the center of the conflict). But just how much do you remember about this incredibly interesting woman who toggled between vixen and heroine?

Truth Bomb
As a young woman, Rachel was ashamed of the humble home her mother Ada had made for her after Gerald Davis abandoned his wife and child for greener pastures. Believing that wealth and status were the only things that mattered in life, Rachel married hospital intern Russ Matthews.

However, Rachel would make her new husband a cuckold and shamelessly pursue dark and brooding Steven “Steve” Frame despite knowing he only had eyes for her sister-in-law Alice.

She was able to maneuver him into a sexual liaison, and upon learning she was pregnant, Rachel corralled Alice into a bedroom – while Alice and Steve’s engagement party raged downstairs – and announced that she was carrying a child that belonged to Alice’s intended!

The Marrying Kind
Beautiful, trim, and vivacious Rachel was a woman who was never left wanting for male company. However, her problem was that she frequently chose the wrong partner, basing her decision on the man’s ability to provide for her monetarily and fulfill her sexually.

She married three …continue reading on the next page —>

Continue reading on the next page…

She married three men – Russ, Steve, and restaurateur Ted Clark – before finally getting it right with Mackenzie Cory. However, Rachel managed to screw that relationship up twice – although marriage number three held true until Mac’s untimely death in 1989.

Subsequently, Rachel would wed volatile Carl Hutchins, which was a surprising match considering Carl once shot her and she had pretended to poison him in a bid to extract a confession about his plethora of dirty dealings.

A Killer Vacation
During one of Rachel and Mac’s (frequent) estrangements, the publishing czar found himself drawn to Steve Frame’s younger sister Janice. But what Mac didn’t realize was that beneath Janice’s doe-eyed farm-girl façade lurked a black widow in training.

Inspired by the plot of a thriller titled Harry Must Die, Janice began to poison her rich new hubby and, when it looked like the end was near, she spirited Mac away to St. Croix. Rachel raced to save her ex but after finding him, she was confronted by a knife-wielding Janice. The two women grappled and fell into a nearby swimming pool. Both emerged from the water, but Janice had been fatally stabbed.

Offspring
Rachel was a mother to a quintet of loyal and loving children who strived to make their mother proud even when she used, abused, or manipulated their affections and very existence. Her eldest son, James “Jamie” Frame, was the baby she had so callously used to disintegrate Steve and Alice’s engagement.

Her second child was born during her marriage to Mac. Amanda was the apple of her daddy’s eye but she was used as a pawn in her parents’ multiple union bust-ups. Matthew was biologically Mitch Blake’s son, but Mac raised him as his own (much like he had done with a teenaged Jamie). Rachel’s final pregnancy (with husband Carl) resulted in twins – Elizabeth and Cory.

While Rachel was six months along, her doctor discovered a tumor growing in her uterus. An operation to remove it would have most likely resulted in a terminated pregnancy so Rachel refused medical intervention until the babies were born – a far cry from the mother who had little interest in her firstborn after he scored her the man she thought would be her meal ticket.

Hidden Talent
Bored and frequently left home alone, a pregnant Rachel took up sculpting as a hobby in 1975 and realized that she actually had exceptional talent; she began sculpting professionally the next year.

In the ensuing decade, Rachel would become a much sought-after artist. She opened her own gallery in the early 1980s and added photographer to her list of career achievements. Do you have any favorite memories of Rachel? Share them below in our comments section.